On sex, gender, the Gods and metaphor

The reflection is not the tree, the map is not the territory, the metaphor is not the reality. Yet nor are these things unrelated. Photo by Redd F on Unsplash

Over the years I’ve spent in inclusive Heathen spaces online, I’ve seen many people ask questions about which Gods might be seen as trans, non-binary, genderfluid, etc. I’ve been part of many discussions on this, on how different ideas of gender relate to the Gods, and I have more thoughts on this than I can fit into a short message on Discord. This essay is an attempt to lay those thoughts out in a more thorough and systematic way.

On ritual, the sacred past, and changing the future

Different ways of thinking about time, and particularly the past, have been one of the most profound changes in approaches for me as I deepen my understanding of heathenry and animism. Photo by Alexey Savchenko on Unsplash

Key to the heathen worldview is the cosmology centred on the World Tree and the Well of Wyrd which feeds it. As elucidated by Paul Bauschatz [1], the Well represents the sacred past – as they occur, all deeds pass into the Well, laying down layers or strata of wyrd which become the unchangeable orlæg all wights must live within. But the past is not “dead”, it is not “over” – it is ever-growing, it waters the World Tree.

The map is not the territory: taxonomy and classification

The map is by necessity a simplification. Where map and territory differ, the only option is to abide by the territory. Photo by Sebastian Herrmann on Unsplash

I have been reflecting recently on how as animist-polytheists we seem to often get into discussions about how to classify and draw boundaries between different sorts of beings. Where is the line between a spirit and a God? Are land-wights the Dead? Are they different to the Fair Folk?

On “empaths”, Barnum statements, & coping strategies

The web of wyrd connects us all: humans, Gods, Ancestors, wights. Photo by Jack van der Spoel on Unsplash

A while back I was scrolling my Instagram feed and came across an infographic-style post by a popular (hundreds of thousands of follows) witchcraft/occult account I follow, entitled “Empath Signs”. I’ve had what you might call problems with the way the witchcraft/occult and adjacent spheres discuss “Empaths” and I’m going to use the six signs given in this post (which has over 9.5k likes at time of writing) to discuss why.

Disclaimer: this is not intended as a denunciation or personal attack on the Instagram user whose post I’m addressing, or indeed anyone else. I happened to see this specific post on my feed but there are countless others on any social media platform. I am more interested in discussing what I think are harmful ideas and discourse in the community than I am in condemning individuals. If anyone has the urge after reading this to harass anyone making these kinds of posts, don’t. Now with that out of the way let’s get into it.